Temptation is a serious spiritual issue that we have to confront persistently in our walk with the Lord.
Nobody is above temptation. It’s the very means through which the enemy tries to make inroads into our lives in order to pull us away from God.
The way that Satan operates is that he isn’t going to come forcefully in order to drag us into something contrary to what God wants us to do.
However, we can be quite sure that in all his guile will use a much more subtle approach in order to entice us into sin. Therefore, we have to be very mindful of his schemes.
The fundamental of temptation is laid upon Satan influencing us to consider doing or indulging into something that’s completely detestable and unacceptable in the sight of God as something that’s okay.
His foremost objective is to shift our focuses away from the true way we should view temptation which is from a godly perspective into a humanistic perspective.
What do I mean by that?
If we can look at temptation from a godly perspective, we’ll know right away that what we’re tempted of doesn’t fit whom we are in Christ.
Therefore, we’ll not engage in anything that can bring reproach to the name of Christ.
On the other hand, if we miss the overall picture of the true nature of temptation by simply viewing it from a humanistic perspective, then we’ll come up with various types of excuses in order to give in.
The Devil Will Always Try To Exploit Our Weaknesses
The enemy knows our weaknesses, so that’s the main reason he’s not going to tempt us into an area where we’re not susceptible to temptation.
In many cases, when are caught up into temptation, our typical tendency is to forfeit our own identity in Christ in our desperate attempt to do something immediate to relieve the intense pressure being exerted upon our flesh.
Oftentimes, it’s way after we’ve indulged into something sinful, we come to the realization of how serious and wicked what we’ve committed is to God as a result of the massive guilt we experience subsequently.
The best way to deal with temptation is by confronting it right away. After all, Christ has provided us a clear approach that we can use in order to confront temptation by relying on the steadfastness of the Word of God.
Let’s Try to Replicate What Christ Had Done When Tempted by Satan
Let’s take a look at these following Scriptures:
The tempter came to Him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:3-4).
If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command His angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Matthew 4:6-7)
Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from Me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” (Matthew 4:8-10)
Jesus, who is known as the Captain of our salvation, defeated the greatest enemies the world has ever seen, death and Satan.
As a result, it’s worthwhile to consider getting vital instructions regarding tackling a serious issue from the greatest and most powerful military leader the world has ever seen or heard of.
According to the gospel’s accounts, Christ was tempted 3 times by Satan in the wilderness.
Christ didn’t give any of these temptations a serious consideration by His quick responses.
He used the Word of God in order to respond to Satan on every of these occasions.
Christ came with a critical mission that was based solely on doing the will of God in order to save humanity from sin (John 6:38).
His way of thinking was centered only upon pleasing God along with bringing Him glory in everything He does (John 8:50). That was the top priority of His earthly ministries.
Shockingly, this very event that occurred between both Christ and the devil had the potential to destroy all humanity because had Christ succumbed to any of these temptations, He would have no longer been able to be the spotless and unblemished Lamb of God.
Obedience to God Must Supersede Giving Into Temptation
Christ knew that His responsibility to remain obedient to the Father by keeping His Word was infinitely more important than what Satan was trying to offer Him.
It’s quite interesting that the devil was offering the Creator of all things the nations of the world while he has never created anything during his existence.
Christ is no longer there wrestling with the enemy in the flesh, but we’ve become His representatives on this earth. We’re still fighting against that same enemy on a regular basis.
The same responsibility that Christ had to remain obedient to God applies to us. Keep in mind, just as God wants to be glorified through us, so is the devil. His goal is to rob the glory and worship that are due to God from us.
We have to allow the Holy Spirit to empower us to develop Christ’s mindset with respect to dealing with temptation. It means that the truth of Scriptures must dominate every aspect of our lives.
Our minds have to be programmed on living in such a way that honors God’s holy Word.
We fall into temptation by willfully ignoring what the Word of God says, so that we can do what we’re enticed to do.
Therefore, if we want to resist temptation, we must allow the Word of God to settle firmly into our minds.
Although temptation in itself is not a sin, but when we’re tempted we should realize firsthand that temptation is there to lead us to sin.
Lastly, we’re responsible to make sure that we deal with sin wisely, so that we can live for Christ alone in the beauty of holiness and righteousness.